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Twin Cities officials will testify in House al-Shabab hearings

The House Committee on Homeland Security hearing scheduled for Wednesday on al-Shabab recruitment in Minnesota will feature at least two witnesses from the Twin Cities.

One of them, former U.S. assistant attorney general Anders Folk, was the lead prosecutor in the government's case against the alleged radicalization of Twin Cities men who joined the insurgency in their native Somalia.

Folk is one of three witnesses called to testify by Republican Rep. Peter King, who chairs the committee.

Democrats on the committee have invited St. Paul Police Chief Tom Smith to testify. Smith has been involved with ongoing outreach with Muslim community members and Somali-American youth in particular.

The hearing will be the third in a controversial series on radicalization within the Muslim-American community. While proponents say the threat needs to be investigated, critics say it's wrong to single out one religious group in the fight against terrorism.